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Fire in Old Cairo threatens Al Hussein Mosque

January 31, 2022 at 12:44 pm

A man walks in the vicinity of the closed al-Hussein mosque in Egypt’s capital Cairo on March 20, 2020 [KHALED DESOUKI/AFP via Getty Images]

A fire spread in the historic quarter of Cairo on Sunday night with fears it could reach the historic Al Hussein Mosque which is a UNESCO World Heritage Site.

 

The area known as Old Cairo or Islamic Cairo is where the famous Khan El-Khalili market is situated.

According to AhlulBayt News Agency firefighters worked through the night to get the blaze under control and rescue civilians from burning buildings.

Witnesses say the fire broke out after a gas cylinder used for cooking and heating exploded. In 2019 a fire engulfed Attaba vegetable market in Old Cairo, also because of an exploded gas cylinder, and destroyed more than a third of the market.

There has been a string of deadly fires in Egypt over the past several months, particularly inside hospitals, due to low fire safety standards.

In December 2020 seven patients died and several others were injured after a fire engulfed a private hospital treating coronavirus patients on the outskirts of Cairo.

In June of the same year seven patients died in the intensive care unit of a private hospital in Alexandria after a fire broke out.

In March 2021 20 people died after a fire destroyed a four-storey textile factory north of Cairo.

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